Felix Hausdorff was a German mathematician regarded as one of the founders of modern topology and general set theory. In his 1914 book Grundzuge der Mengenlehre, Foundations of Set Theory, Hausdorff gave one of the first systematic and rigorous treatments of what is now called a topological space, introducing the separation condition, now called the Hausdorff condition, that distinct points in the space can always be enclosed in disjoint neighborhoods, a property so fundamental that most spaces studied in modern mathematics are assumed to satisfy it. He also made significant contributions to measure theory, developing what became known as Hausdorff measure and the associated concept of Hausdorff dimension, a way of assigning a size, not necessarily a whole number, to highly irregular sets, an idea that later became central to the mathematical study of fractals. Hausdorff, who also wrote philosophical and literary work under the pen name Paul Mongre, was Jewish, and after facing years of escalating persecution under Nazi rule in Germany, he and his wife and sister-in-law took their own lives in January 1942 rather than be sent to a deportation camp.
Facts
Birth YearSourced to the subject's own account Birth DateSourced to the subject's own account Death DateSourced to the subject's own account Death YearSourced to the subject's own account FieldSourced to the subject's own accountMathematics (topology, set theory, measure theory, functional analysis) 1 Death PlaceSourced to the subject's own account NationalitySourced to the subject's own account Notable WorkSourced to the subject's own accountFounding work in modern topology; contributions to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory and functional analysis 1 Connections
In the Other Atlases
- Also in Geography Atlas: Germany, nationality there.
Sources
1. Felix Hausdorff (Wikipedia)
Wikipedialead paragraph, parenthetical life dates
Felix Hausdorff ( HOWS-dorf, HOWZ-dorf; November 8, 1868, January 26, 1942) was a German mathematician, pseudonym Paul Mongré, who is considered to be one of the founders of modern topology and who contributed significantly to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory, and functional analysis.
Life section, sentence on the deportation order and deaths
After Hausdorff, his wife, and his wife's sister, Edith Pappenheim (who was living with them), were ordered in January 1942 to move to the Endenich camp, the three died by suicide on 26 January 1942 by taking an overdose of veronal.
Life section, sentence on the Bonn deportations
In mid-1941, the Bonn Jews began to be deported to the "Monastery for Eternal Adoration" in Endenich, Bonn, from which the nuns had been expelled.
lead paragraph, first sentence
Felix Hausdorff ( HOWS-dorf, HOWZ-dorf; November 8, 1868, January 26, 1942) was a German mathematician, pseudonym Paul Mongré, who is considered to be one of the founders of modern topology and who contributed significantly to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory, and functional analysis.
lead paragraph, first sentence (contributions clause)
Felix Hausdorff ( HOWS-dorf, HOWZ-dorf; November 8, 1868, January 26, 1942) was a German mathematician, pseudonym Paul Mongré, who is considered to be one of the founders of modern topology and who contributed significantly to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory, and functional analysis.
lead paragraph, first sentence (founders-of-topology clause)
Felix Hausdorff ( HOWS-dorf, HOWZ-dorf; November 8, 1868, January 26, 1942) was a German mathematician, pseudonym Paul Mongré, who is considered to be one of the founders of modern topology and who contributed significantly to set theory, descriptive set theory, measure theory, and functional analysis.
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